Starting with the Uchiha clan, they began cultivating demonic arts.

Chapter 174 Hanzo the Salamander

Just as Jiraiya and the others were trying their best to infiltrate the Sand Village, Natsumi Hoshi, after a whole day of flying, crossed the Land of Wind and arrived in the rainy Land of Rain.

Upon arriving in the Land of Rain, Xia Rixing had to slow down. The environment here was not very friendly to flying. Not to mention the continuous drizzle that hindered flight, flying too high could easily result in being struck by lightning.

Fortunately, the Land of Rain is small, and Xia Rixing quickly arrived at the Rain Village. She then took out the Flying Thunder God Kunai and channeled her chakra into it.

With a flash of light, Uchiha Touya appeared in front of Xia Rixing in an instant, and finally his enormous spiritual power spread out, scanning the entire Amegakure.

"Huh? No...Isn't Nagato in Amegakure right now?"

After a moment, Uchiha Touyu frowned slightly. At present, no outstanding chakra was found in Amegakure. The strongest one was only about the same as an ordinary Kage, and he did not pose any threat to Uchiha Touyu.

If Uchiha Touyu wasn't mistaken, the one he sensed should be Hanzo of the Salamander from Amegakure. Although this guy had a great reputation and was even called a demigod, his strength was actually not much stronger than an ordinary Kage.

The real reason why other ninja villages were unwilling to get entangled with this guy was because Hanzo the Salamander was a complete poisoner. Even his breathing carried toxins, making him an excellent clear-out for mobs on the battlefield.

Aside from the transplanted poison sac and the toxin from the summoning beast Salamander, Hanzo's strength wasn't much stronger than that of the "strongest Third Kazekage." While not entirely a fabricated figure, he certainly lived up to his reputation.

Even though most of Nagato's chakra was absorbed by the Rinnegan, the quality of his chakra still far surpassed that of a typical Kage-level shinobi.

After a moment's thought, Uchiha Tou quickly realized that the change was likely caused by the butterfly effect of his killing of Shimura Danzo and Uchiha Madara.

Clearly, there is no real conflict between Hanzo the Salamander and the Akatsuki organization, and Nagato has not killed Hanzo the Salamander or taken over Amegakure.

"Think about it carefully and you'll understand. Jiraiya was able to take Yahiko and Konan with him, so the storyline in the Land of Rain has clearly taken a completely different turn."

"However, in any case, the Akatsuki's headquarters should still be in the Land of Rain, and I believe Hanzo must have enough intelligence there."

Thinking of this, Uchiha Touka first told Xia Rixing to go back to Sunagakure, while he slowly walked into Amegakure.

With his powerful genjutsu, Uchiha Touyu moved through Amegakure as if it were empty, and all the ninjas in the streets and alleys ignored him. Soon, he arrived at the tall tower in the very center of Amegakure.

This is considered the most heavily guarded place in the ninja village. Although Hanzo of the Salamander was not defeated by the Gedo Mazo summoned by Nagato like in the original story and had to be protected by the guard ninjas, the old and frail Hanzo of the Salamander is still very dedicated to protecting himself.

But how could these ninjas from Amegakure possibly stand against Uchiha Hiu? He walked in openly and swaggeringly through the main gate of the tower, completely oblivious to the wide-eyed ninjas beside him.

Inside the tower, in a room, Hanzo the Salamander sat quietly on a futon, holding a sickle, meditating with his eyes closed.

As he got older, Hanzo the Salamander grew to prefer the quiet atmosphere and no longer enjoyed going out to practice martial arts as much as he did when he was younger.

As for the reason for this change, Hanzo of the Salamander was well aware of it. When he was young, he needed to show his strength in front of many ninjas to boost the confidence of his village.

At that time, he was indeed very powerful. His top-notch swordsmanship and water-style techniques, combined with his own potent poison, were enough to make any opponent wary of him.

It's a pity... I'm too old now!

The effects of aging on taijutsu-type ninjas are much stronger than those on ninjutsu-type and genjutsu-type ninjas. Hanzo of the Salamander, apart from his poison, was mostly skilled in swordsmanship and body sleight of hand. His decline in strength after aging was even greater than that of ordinary ninjas.

Not to mention that when he was young, in pursuit of great strength, Hanzo of the Salamander transplanted the venom sac of the Salamander into himself. While this made him invincible in his youth, sweeping away many opponents, it also caused his body to age much faster than that of ordinary ninjas in his old age.

Although Hanzo the salamander has a strong resistance to the deadly poison, it cannot withstand the constant wear and tear of these toxins on its body. Now, at 50 years old, Hanzo the salamander is in such poor health that it is no different from a 70-year-old.

At this time, Hanzo of the Salamander could only keep a low profile and reduce the number of times he made a move, so as not to let other ninjas see his weakness.

After basking in the exuberance of his youth for quite some time, Hanzo the Salamander suddenly awoke and opened his eyes:

"Strange, why is it so quiet outside?!"

In the Land of Rain, a continuous drizzle falls all the time. Even inside the tower, the faint sound of raindrops can be heard. Normally, it would be hard to notice, but when Hanzo the Salamander is in a meditative state, these subtle rain sounds can be heard clearly.

Now that the sound of rain has stopped, Hanzo the Salamander's first reaction is not that the sky has cleared and the rain has stopped, but that he has been under a genjutsu!

He remembered very clearly that the sound of raindrops outside was not the kind that was sparse, gradually getting quieter, and finally stopping, but rather that it suddenly disappeared at a certain point.

It was as if an invisible curtain had suddenly enveloped the surroundings. Hanzo the Salamander carefully observed his surroundings. Although he did not notice any flaws, the sense of unease grew stronger in his heart.

Seeing Hanzo of the Salamander looking around as if he had noticed something, Uchiha Touyu was slightly surprised. This was the first time that someone had discovered a flaw in his manipulation of the five senses genjutsu.

Of course, this was also partly because Uchiha Touyu wasn't putting in much effort. After all, with his current strength, he really didn't need to be so careful anymore. Therefore, he didn't put much effort into casting genjutsu—if he couldn't control his five senses, he could just use a Divine Transmission Technique.

With a gentle wave of his hand, Uchiha Touya broke free of the genjutsu he had set up. Hanzo of the Salamander trembled as he saw the stranger who had suddenly appeared in his room. Instinctively, he gripped his scythe and retreated rapidly.

Hanzo of the Salamander froze on the spot after taking just one step back. Uchiha Touya had vanished without a trace, and a hand had patted his shoulder from behind.

So fast!

After sensing Uchiha Hiu's speed, Hanzo of the Salamander was almost incredulous and completely stunned.

It's worth noting that Hanzo the Salamander is most famous for his deadly poison and swordsmanship, as well as his incredibly fast Body Flicker Technique.

Even though he is old and frail now, thanks to his rich experience, the speed of his instantaneous movement technique at the beginning is not much slower than when he was young.

Even for fellow Kage-level ninjas, getting close to him is no easy feat, let alone suddenly appearing behind him and patting him on the shoulder.

Forcibly suppressing the urge to look back, Hanzo the Salamander exerted force with his feet and used the Body Flicker Technique to rush forward again, but halfway through, his expression changed drastically.

Because Uchiha Hiyu had appeared in front of him from behind, pressing a finger between his eyebrows.

Kasaya Slash!

The scythe in his hand drew a diagonal arc, directly slashing towards Uchiha Hiyu. However, the scythe only passed through an empty phantom. Then he felt a finger pressing on his neck, a numb sensation spreading from his neck, and he fell to the ground.

Before the numbness spread throughout his body, Hanzo the Salamander struggled to reach out and grab the breathing mask on his face. As he fell to the ground, the mask was ripped off.

"Who exactly are you? What do you want from me?"

Hanzo, the Salamander, lay sprawled on the ground, his face cold as he asked Uchiha Touyu a question. Uchiha Touyu chuckled, glanced at the breathing mask that had fallen to the ground, and shook his head.

"Trying to stall for time? You don't actually think the poison gas you're expelling can harm me, do you?"

"The venom sac of the salamander is indeed terrifying, but ninjutsu in the ninja world has been constantly evolving. Since the transformation from ninja clans to ninja villages, the development of ninjutsu in the last few decades has been faster than in the previous hundreds of years."

"And of all ninjutsu, medical ninjutsu has developed the fastest. Ten years ago, your Salamander Hanzo's Breathing might have been an extremely terrifying and incurable poison, but now at least the Sand Village, the Rock Village, and the Leaf Village definitely have a way to cure the Salamander's poison!"

Uchiha Touya wasn't exaggerating. After the major ninja clans became ninja villages, ninjutsu did indeed experience a tremendous development. Why are almost all the second kage of the major ninja villages great inventors? That's the result of the collision and exchange of secret ninjutsu among the ninja clans.

Previously, due to the limitations imposed by ninja clans, medical ninjutsu was almost entirely unsystematic. It was only after the establishment of ninja villages that a branch of medical ninjutsu emerged.

Medical ninjutsu was in its early stages of development a decade or two ago, which is why Hanzo the Salamander earned the reputation of a demigod with his deadly poison.

In this day and age, Hanzo the Salamander would not only be able to spare the three Sannin, but any one of them would probably beat him to a pulp.

With his ability to control spirits, Uchiha Touyu was a true all-rounder in ninjutsu, and his medical ninjutsu was only slightly inferior to Tsunade's. However, his immunity to Hanzo's poison was not due to medical ninjutsu, but rather to his extremely strong physique and Six Paths level bloodline.

Upon hearing Uchiha Tou's words, Hanzo of the Salamander's expression immediately turned ugly. He had indeed planned to use his poison breathing technique to ambush Uchiha Tou, but after Uchiha Tou pointed out that his poison had already deteriorated, he really had no means of resistance.

"Damn it... If I'm not mistaken, you must be that Uchiha who betrayed Konoha!"

"Do you want to control me and take over the entire Rain Village? Or is this all a conspiracy by Konoha?"

Uchiha Touyu shrugged lightly, looking at the tears of this era before him, and said cheerfully:

"You're overthinking it. I'm here simply to ask about information regarding the Akatsuki organization."

Upon hearing this, Hanzo of the Salamander was completely stunned. You, an Uchiha, came to Amegakure, defeated me, a demigod of the ninja world, just to ask about the Akatsuki organization?

The Akatsuki organization is somewhat famous in the Land of Rain, but in the entire ninja world, who knows who they are?

He himself was a renowned powerhouse in the entire ninja world, and Amegakure was arguably the strongest second-tier ninja village, far more powerful than the Akatsuki!

Seeing Hanzo of the Salamander's expression of utter disbelief, Uchiha Tou rolled his eyes and said:

"Don't just stand there like an idiot... You don't expect me to use illusion magic to force information out of you, do you?!"

After hearing Uchiha Tobi's words, Hanzo of the Salamander finally realized what was happening and spoke in a deep voice:

"You only need information about the Akatsuki?"

"That's right, don't tell me you don't have any information about the Akatsuki! As the leader of the Land of Rain, you'll definitely be paying close attention to the second-ranked member!"

"With the Land of Rain closing itself off from the world for so many years, aside from keeping an eye on domestic organizations, the Rain Ninja probably don't have any other intelligence to keep track of!"

Uchiha Touyu is right. Since the Second Shinobi World War, the Land of Rain has been in a state of isolation, prohibiting ninjas from other countries from entering or leaving.

The Land of Rain is a poor and remote country with a harsh climate. With the added threat of Hanzo the Salamander, the strength of the Rain Ninja should not be underestimated. Naturally, ninjas from other countries have no interest in coming here.

With no other ninjas around, and the Rain Ninjas not being particularly fond of going out, the Rain Country's intelligence system naturally focused entirely on its own internal affairs. Among these, the intelligence on the Akatsuki organization was of paramount importance; the intelligence on just the three leaders of the Akatsuki alone could fill an entire drawer.

"Alright, I understand! What information do you want to know about the Akatsuki?"

"I'd like to ask, where is the Akatsuki's base?"

Akatsuki's base...

For a moment, Hanzo of the Salamander fell silent, and Uchiha Tou tilted his head slightly, somewhat puzzled by his behavior.

"What, you don't even know where Akatsuki's base is? I don't believe Amegakure is that weak."

"I know……"

Hanzo the Salamander murmured, his eyes filled with an expression as if he had been unjustly beaten up:

"It's not just me... almost any ninja in the entire Rain Village knows where the Akatsuki's base is!"

Uchiha Touyu made a mistake—the Akatsuki organization at this time is not some secret organization preparing to overthrow the ninja world; their base, like other ninja villages, appears openly and legitimately.

(End of this chapter)